Food safe finish

I have been considering adding some color to some carved spoons with food coloring to make them food safe. Does anyone have any suggestions on what could be used to seal in the color with a food safe finish? I was thinking of trying mineral oil.

Any thoughts or ideas on an alternative to either the coloring or finish would be greatly appreciated.

I make a beeswax and mineral oil finish that I heat and melt into the butcher blocks. Counters that are not used for cutting I use a poly, epoxy, or acrylic plastic – after curing it is not an issue (just like a table or bar top) then wax it. If you cut on it, it will show. Utensils are a different matter because you are chewing on them and getting them hot, I wouldn’t put anything on them and only use safe woods – maple, olive. If you use a dye, I would think it would have to be eddible, but I cannot say for sure. If it were to react to a food, you could have a problem. Foods cover the gambit – acidic, alkaline, hot and cold so a reaction is possible.

All of the articles that I have read state that all of the standard finishes are food safe once they have fully cured. I think the real issue is how they will stand up to the intended purpose. Are they to be used for cooking where they will be immersed in hot possibly acetic liquids or on tables as servers.

If you use mineral oil and/or beeswax it will leach if you submerse the spoons in a hot liquid. You may also lose your coloring as you lose the mineral oil and/or wax. But that doesn’t make it food unsafe.

-- Jack T, John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life."

Thanks for the input guys. The spoons are the long handled mixing type and could be subjected to hot liquids so I may have to forgo the coloring idea. I might try staining them with coffee to help bring out the carved detail. I don’t want to screw them up so I’ll do a bit of experimenting.